A Twist of Fate
by The Escaped
Summary: Jack Frost messed everything up. Just like always. With Easter ruined, rejected by the Guardians, Pitch finds Jack with a threat and a bargain. In one world, the Nightmare King wanted Jack's staff in exchange for Baby Tooth's life. But with a twist of Fate, he has something else in mind. T for angst and mild profanity. Here there be whump.
1. Chapter 1

_Hi! This is my first fanfic for Rise of the Guardians, and I'll admit, I'm a little apprehensive. I actually had never seen this movie until the summer. I didn't have any interest in RotG until I stumbled upon the fanfiction on this site. It was so good that it pulled me right in, and opened me up to a wonderful movie. So pat yourselves all on the back, and accept my heartfelt thanks. Hopefully I will maintain the standard that you have all set before me. Any criticism is welcome._

_Lastly, I have not abandoned my Circle of Magic fanfiction. However, Nanowrimo is upon us, and all my efforts are focused on my dystopian world. The only reason this is going out is because it was pre-prepared. I will return to it tout-de-suite once December and my nervous breakdown roll around._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Rise of the Guardians, nor will I profit from this (except in smiles from reviews!). Despite all the paper snowflakes I have made and the fact that no one notices me, I am not, in fact, Jack Frost. I also do not own the title picture, it belongs to DreamWorks studios._

_We now return to our previously scheduled program!_

_Timeline: just after the scene at Antarctica (?)_

"You shouldn't have said those things to him."

Bunny glanced over. Toothania was looking over the side of the sleigh, as if for an ethereally pale figure. The nervous energy she carried with her was gone, wiped away with the belief of the children they were supposed to protect. Now her wings were limp, she leaned heavily on the side of the sleigh. Losing Easter had taken its toll on her. He could already feel it beginning to do the same to him. It would not be pretty. E. Aster Bunnymund was fighting it as long as he could.

But fighting took a lot out of him, and his self-control was as broken as his googies. He snapped at her, which you should never, ever do at Tooth. "We all knew this would happen. Anyone would have made a better Guardian than Frost."

That she didn't punch him said something about how weak she was. They both knew they needed to save their strength for fighting Pitch. "You shouldn't have said those things. You chased him off without giving him a chance to explain."

"Like you wanted to know. He gave up Baby Tooth to Pitch, in exchange for his memories." Tooth flinched, and Bunny immediately felt horrible. The Tooth Fairy had suffered heavy losses in Pitch's attacks. Bringing it up again wasn't going to solve anything.

"Maybe we'll run into him again." He said, as a peace offering. "Then he can explain."

"You won't take it back though." She mumbled. "You never take anything back."

"Will be time for finger-pointing later," declared North from the front of the sleigh, "First, we must defeat Pitch."

"And then Jack," Tooth said, "Then we'll apologize to him." Toothania spent half her time sorting arguments between her fairies. She knew that no good would come of leaving wounds to fester.

Bunny rolled his eyes. "We'll see."

"Is arguing over now?" North asked from the front seat of the sleigh. "We have much to do!"

"Right! First order of business, we find out which kids still believe." Bunny was antsy to talk to them. It was silly, the Guardian of Hope, needing reassurances, but the little girl who had walked through him had shaken something in his core; brought forth some new fear he'd never known.

"The globe will tell us locations!" announced North, swinging the reins and sending the sleigh lurching in a nausea-inducing tilt.

Bunny grabbed hold of the sides with a groan. "Really, North, I understand the need for speed, but ain't there some way to make this ride a bit smoother?"

"And take fun out of ride?" the man roared back, "I think not!"

Bunny resigned himself to hugging the side, willing his stomach not to regurgitate.

"I swear, I'll tell MiM on you if I fall out of this bloody thing again!"

"Two centuries ago, Bunny. I have had sides fixed since then!"

And he made the sleigh rock again, just to annoy him.

Tooth, hands on the sides, squinted at the air. "Guys, look at that."

Dark clouds rumbled in the distance, but there was no lightning. Against the blackness was a small pinprick of white. If Bunny squinted, he could make out a blue hoodie.

"It's Jack!" exclaimed Tooth happily. "North, turn the sleigh!"

With an uneasy glance at the looming clouds, North complied. It was better to brave a storm than incur Tooth's wrath.

The boy's eyes were oddly blank. If they were red-rimmed, no one had time to notice.

"Jack!" Tooth called to him, unable to hide her relief. "We were so worried!"

He flinched at that, hiding behind his hood. The winds swelled, confused at the withdrawal of their friend.

North had only just directed the sleigh towards him when the skies started seething. The clouds were moving, a sudden turmoil, until they burst into smaller figures.

"Those ain't normal clouds," said Bunny.

"That's…"

"…Nightmare sand."

It wasn't a flock of Nightmares that came for them; it was a _horde._ An army surged through the clouds at them, a solid wall of pitch black sand. For an instant, Jack disappeared in the darkness, and they thought he was gone.

"Jack!" shouted Tooth, flitting into the sky to look for him.

He appeared out of the shadows of Nightmares, miraculously unscathed, and she sighed with relief.

Then he pointed his staff at her.

Frost raced out of the end; Tooth only just dodged it. The tip of her wing was caught anyway. She shrieked as she spiraled out of control, her flight pattern altered by the ice. Bunny only just caught her. The winter spirit sent more ice at them both, just missing. Two Nightmares raced past him on either side, careening towards the Guardians.

"You bloody coward!" roared Bunny. From a dozen yards away, they saw the boy's jaw clench.

North slashed at the Nightmares, finishing one with each blow. "Jack, you must not listen to Pitch! Whatever he promised you iz lie!"

Bunny didn't bother trying to argue with him. The show pony had gone over to Pitch Black. He wasn't worth rescuing after that. "I'll rip your head off!" He ducked another burst of blue, feeling ice brush by his fur. If that's how the gumby wanted to play. Ripping his boomerang off its strap, he sent it hurtling towards the traitor. Frost was distracted, and they had time to wipe out more of the Nightmares.

Toothania rocked in the air, trying to regain balance, and shot towards Jack. "Jack, you have to listen to us!"

He swung the staff at her, "Keep away from me!"

There was pain there. Tooth hesitated, wondering at it, and he shot at her again. The shot went wide, decimating a Nightmare as it came up behind North.

Tooth followed its trail. "Jack…?" His eyes flicked back to her.

He'd forgotten the boomerang. It came back around now, driving into his side. Jack yelped.

"Serves you right, ya blooming dill!" Bunny shouted, leaping to catch it again. He landed in the sleigh solidly and was set on by a black stallion.

Frost turned back to Tooth. The hurt in his eyes had been knocked away. "Get away from me," he repeated, voice harsh, and froze her other wing.

Tooth was free-falling, and she hadn't done that in so long, hadn't felt fear like that in so long, that she'd forgotten how sharp it was, how the wind turned to a scream in her ears and she realized for the first time in a long time how far away the ground really was…

The sleigh was under her with a thump. She landed hard.

"Tooth!"

"I'm fine, North!" Ignoring the needles of pain shooting through her with movement, she grabbed a stray toy from the floor and threw it at the nearest Nightmare. It reared, more in confusion than anything else, and before it could recover she punched it hard enough to dissolve it.

The Nightmares were dwindling, some even retreating, but the Guardians could feel their power sapping. Children everywhere were waking up with teeth under their pillows, searching for eggs that hadn't materialized across lawns. North wobbled suddenly as a bout of disbelief struck him, and only another wayward streak of ice saved him.

Bunny hit the last Nightmare, and his boomerang lost its power. It tumbled away, lost in the clouds. Jack was the only adversary left, untouched by disbelief, and they were so drained they could barely stand upright.

The sleigh landed shakily on the ground. Jack froze the restraints on the harnesses and the reindeer, befuddled with magic loss, bolted. Tooth grabbed a stray piece of wood from the sleigh, only for him to shoot it out of her hands. North's sword was next. There was nothing left to fight with. Frost circled them, staff held out before him. It was shaking. His eyes were wide, as if he hadn't expected to get this far.

"Jack," Toothania said softly, "Please."

"I always knew you weren't fit to be a Guardian," Bunny snarled at him. "Do it then, ya bloody traitor!"

Frost's battle face wavered. The thin line of his scowl trembled, then crumpled. He rocketed off the ground, into the air, and was gone.

They stared after him.

Predictably, it was Bunny who broke the silence.

"Anyone wanna tell me what that was about?"

The words had no sooner left his mouth when there was a pop and burst of light. When it cleared, a fluffy bunny stood in E. Aster Bunnymund's place.

Back at Santoff Clausen, Bunnymund had regained some of his fury.

"That bloody coward, going over to Pitch when we needed him! If I ever get my hands on him-"

"Iz not problem, Bunny." North was getting patched up by a yeti where a Nightmare had torn a gash from his leg. "Problem iz that Jack beat us. Iz problem that he can defeat us."

"And why didn't he?" asked Toothania from her spot by the fire. The heat warmed her back, slowly melting the ice she had been attacked with. "He could have finished us. Why didn't he?"

"We already knew the kid didn't have the guts to face up to his problems," snapped Bunnymund.

Tooth glared at him. "Don't start again."

"That's what happened, innit? He ruined Easter, and then went flying off to Pitch's side. We were all too daft to notice it. I knew we shouldn'ta trusted the dill…"

"Or your yelling could have driven him to Pitch's side."

They glared at each other.

"Just because his teeth are so white doesn't mean you have to take his side-"

"Don't go there Bunnymund, if you're too 'daft' to see that-"

"_Enough_."

Tooth and Bunny stopped. North was glaring at them both. "We are tired, sick, and hurt. Fighting will do no good. We have enemies for that."

"And one of those enemies is Frost!" cut in Bunny.

With a scowl, Tooth turned to North. "There's something wrong. Maybe he's been infected by the nightmare sand. I don't know what. But he wasn't aiming to kill us. He stopped a Nightmare from getting you; he didn't want to attack me- something doesn't add up. We need to find out what it is."

Stroking his beard, North turned to Phil to order in yetish. The hulking monster sighed and rumbled off. "Here we must find way to watch our enemy. We need something of Jack's, to trace him."

"Give me a minute," Tooth said, pulling at a wing. The ice Jack had glued to her wing was melting, enough that she could pry it off, "Will this do?"

"Da." At his beckoning, Phil returned with a half-completed snow globe. Tooth and Bunny watched with interest. Santa's Workshop was a closely guarded haven. North himself would be the first to tell you that he was mysterious. The yetis for were notorious for preserving the mystery of their boss.

Dropping the ice into the center of the magic globe, North went to fix it onto a contraption like a projector. "With piece of immortal's essence, we can see what is happening to them. If we had used with Sandy…"

He trailed off. The others looked away. The emptiness where the Guardian of Dreams used to stand consumed them. Silence had become an enemy since the death of their friend.

North shook it off. He was the last guardian to remain strong through the disbelief. If they could stave off Pitch until Christmas, he could help the other guardians regain their strength. For now, he had to be strong for all of them.

"This will show us Jack. If Bunny is right, we can hear Pitch's plans."

Ignoring how Bunny threw a triumphant look at Tooth, North began fastening it in place, using a pinch of Sandy's leftover dreamsand to get the machine running.

Soon, a wavering image filled the opposite wall.

Pitch Black was standing in a shroud of darkness. Jack lounged against the side of the wall, shepherd's staff leaning into the crook of his elbow. His arms were crossed, but his head was down, and there was something vulnerable in the set of his shoulders.

"I gave you one order." Pitch's voice was cold. It threw up images of shadows and hands that could drown you in darkness. (Safe in Santaff Clausen, Bunny whirled to Toothania. "I _told_ you!") "One. And you couldn't even do that. No wonder your Guardians tired of you so quickly."

Jack flinched and tried to cover it. "You act like it was an easy job. You told me to kill them! _You_ can't even do that!"

"And you failed, though I should have expected that. That's all you've managed to do so far, after all." Pitch tilted his head, voice becoming light. The hairs on the back of their necks stood on end. "Did you or did you not agree to help me?"

Bony shoulders went up. Jack, "I did. But-"

"And obey my commands?"

"I did," he tried again, "But-"

"But nothing," Pitch began to meander through his lair, hands brushing the cages around him. "Perhaps you thought they would help you. Do you think they're coming this way now? Does

Jack Frost deserve to be rescued?"

"No, I-"

"So then what use are you to me?"

"I-I-"

"And if you're useless to me, then what am I supposed to do with this?"

Toothania screamed. Clenched in the fingers of Pitch's fist was a fairy, the one Jack had rescued from the Nightmare. She cheeped desperately as his fingers flexed.

"Baby Tooth!"

Jack stumbled forward, only to stop as Pitch raised the hand. "Ah ah ah. Careful. It's such difficult work, holding life in the palm of one's hand. I wouldn't want to _slip_-" a squeeze made Baby Tooth cry out, "And do something you'll regret. After all, this is your one friend left, isn't it? You should try to take better care of her."

Jack's face was in turmoil. One hand was outstretched toward Pitch's fist and the little streak of color that twittered in pain. He was plainly terrified, and any of the Guardians could have told him, _should have_ told him, that Pitch could sense that fear, could taste it, was eager to exploit it. "No, don't hurt her-"

"Ah, Jack, I'm so disappointed in you. But that's probably nothing on what this little fairy thinks. All you had to do was complete one little task, and I would have let her go. Now she has to suffer, all because of you."

Shoulders came up in a flinch. "I- you-" But he couldn't seem to go on. His gaze was fixed on Baby Tooth, eyes alight with panic, "I'll do it next time, I will, I promise-"

"I thought you would work harder if there was someone counting on you," another squeeze. Baby Tooth keened and Jack made an involuntary movement for her. Pitch cradled her close, a mockery of comfort, "Of course, I shouldn't be surprised. You already let down the Guardians." Emotions warred on Jack's face. Pitch drank them in with a sad shake of the head. "You really do make a mess of everything, don't you?"

The boy deflated, hanging his head. "I'm sorry. Please don't hurt her."

"You're not in any position to ask anything of me." Shadows swirled over Pitch in fury, curling his lip in a snarl. "You had them at your _mercy_, and you let them go! Someone should pay for your disobedience."

Tooth shuddered. Her fairies were so delicate. It was hard to remember that when they traveled the world. But Pitch could crush her little one with a single squeeze.

"Punish me!" The words burst out, like a sudden frost storm. Baby Tooth cheeped a negative. Jack swallowed, hands curling into his hoodie. His staff was forgotten at his feet. "Punish me. I messed up, didn't I? Like-" something dark flickered over his face, "Like always. You should punish me."

Pitch allowed a half-smile. It was terrifying. "But this will punish you. Watching the only friend you have left die in agony, all because of you? I can't think of a greater punishment."

A thin chest heaved. Blue eyes darted between the Boogeyman and the streak of color in his fist. Jack offered a glass-thin smile and spread his arms in empty bravado. "But think of how much more satisfying it'll be to hit me!"

"Tempting." Pitch moved his hand as if to examine his nails, reveling in the desperate way the winter spirit's eyes followed the hand, the squalling fairy in its grasp. "You're still trying to be the Guardian mascot, aren't you?"

A sudden jerk of his hand made Baby Tooth squeal. Jack went white. "What?" Jack backtracked rapidly, "No!"

"So eager to help your little friend. I think I _should _ kill her, to show you how much of a hero you are." The glass smile broke. "But I want you to see it for yourself." Gently, Pitch replaced the fairy in a cage by his hand. Immediately, she flew against the bars, trying to reach Jack. "We'll see how eager the Guardian's reject is to do the noble thing next time."

North broke the connection as Pitch's first blow knocked Jack to his knees.

"We have to help them!" Tooth was buzzing around the room, fear making her movements erratic. "He's going to kill the boy!"

Bunny sat heavily on the ground, head in his paws, "I can't believe it…"

"Why not?" Toothania became fierce over her family. Anyone who protected them, like Jack had been doing, she would defend to the ends of the earth. "You never thought he would help! Just because of some blizzard on Easter, you've always had it out for him!" Her vision blurred. He was being beaten to protect her fairy right now. And the last thing she'd done was turn him away when he'd tried to explain to her.

"I never thought Pitch would sink to something like this!" blustered the rabbit, but his ears were flat against his neck with shame.

"We should have expected it," she said, wiping her eyes, "We should have known Pitch would think of something like this. He's had hundreds of hostages this whole time. North, what should we- North?"

The Russian was bustling from one end of the room to another, sweeping things into his sack. Despite the dizziness that plagued him, he didn't stop.

"We will need these," he said, "We have rescues to plan!"

_Well? Any thoughts? I bask in constructive criticism! Also, I am not sure how to approach accents for either North or Bunny. Any help you be very much appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to read my work!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Can I just say; wow. You've all completely blown me away. It's been so little time, only a little more than a week, and yet you've all sent me so many wonderful comments. Thank you all who favorited and followed this story. I've never gotten such a quick response before, and it was truly wonderful to see in these dark days of Nanowrimo. Thank you all. _

_Disclaimer: I own nothing._

_A/N: For the sake of the story, I'm going to be taking a few liberties with the effects of belief on the characters. Happily, they didn't go into much detail about how it worked, so I have a little leg-room. I will also be mimicking parts of the movie. Cookies for people who point out which parts!_

_Also, if anyone could tell me if it's Santoff Klausen or Santaff Clausen or any combination thereof, you wouldn't have my eternal gratitude._

_Warnings for mild swearing and very whump!Jack. Return of evil!Pitch_

Chapter 2

When Pitch was finished, he shoved Jack into an empty cage. Jack spat blood out of his mouth, hearing the fairies' trilling rise to shrieks as the bolt slid shut. He tried to glare at Pitch, but his head ached where it had struck the bars.

"Shut up, all of you!" Pitch roared at the fairies before turning back to Jack. "Don't think this is over, Frost. You still have Guardians to kill for me."

"Not if they get me first." That was his hope. By now, the things Jack wanted had been whittled down to two items; protecting Baby Tooth and the other fairies, and making sure Pitch Black lost.

A Nightmare rammed into the cage, making it tilt nauseatingly. "Quiet," Pitch ordered, "I have important things to deal with. You will have to wait." Shadows swirled to life at his feet, swallowing Pitch. He stepped out of them in the center of the room, next to his globe.

Jack's head ached. His mouth was thick with blood, but he didn't care. What mattered more was that Baby Tooth was alright, that she wasn't in Pitch's fist, ready to be crushed. Jack had never seen a dead fairy before, but seeing all the weak fairies caged in Pitch's lair, he was starting to think he would soon, and he was determined that Baby Tooth not be one of them.

The little fairy had been given her own cage, so that Pitch could remember which fairy was the one Jack was ready to do anything for. She peeped at him, flitting as close as she could. He reached out a hand to her. The cages were just close enough that they could touch.

"Don't worry Baby Tooth," he said, straining to make his voice carefree, "I'll get us out of here, no problem!"

She chittered at him, placing delicate hands against his fingers. He could feel her wingbeats stirring the air around him.

Jack had been waiting three centuries to be touched. While he wasn't sure how he felt about Tooth sticking her fingers in his mouth, or North clapping him on the back hard enough to tip him over, Baby Tooth's hands on his own sent a jolt of happiness through him.

"It's fine, really. I've had worse." Her voice rose in a wail, and Jack winced, head throbbing, "Ok, maybe not. Sorry about my teeth getting all red. They probably don't look like freshly fallen snow anymore."

The squeaks coming from her sounded an awful lot like scolding.

"Sorry, sorry. No jokes about the teeth, I get it."

She trailed off, looking sad. Jack hated to see anyone sad.

"The service here really stinks, I think I'm gonna need a word with the manager." Jokes usually worked, or at least, he'd seen them work on other people. But Baby Tooth was a stubborn one. She patted him on the hand, making small noises of sympathy.

Jack was quiet. It was a difficult concept for him, but the last thing they needed was for Pitch to notice Baby Tooth again. "Really, I'll be fine. I'm gonna get you out of here. I promise."

He'd never had someone to promise anything to before. Jack would have to make sure that he got it right.

A wail rose up among the fairies. Jack looked down to see Pitch circling his globe. It took him a minute to realize what the problem was.

"The lights are all going out," he whispered.

"Happy Easter," Pitch said to the globe, running his hands along it. Where his fingers touched, straggling lights went out.

Jack shoved himself against the side of the cage. He needed to get out, he needed to fix it, it was all his fault- "You can't do this!"

"I think you'll find I can." The Nightmare King's smile was predatory. A dozen more lights winked out at the sight of it. "The Guardians have had their turn on the world! Now it's mine again. It's time for the world to remember Pitch Black." He turned back to the globe. "Only six more believers left. Six precious children who believe in the Guardians with all their little hearts. Oh! Better make that five. Four…

Three…

Two…"

Baby Tooth shuddered, covering her eyes. Jack nudged her with a knuckle.

"Look."

The smile had frozen on Pitch's face, melting into something angry and fierce. A single light shone from the globe, despite the nightmare sand attacking it.

"Jamie!"

Pitch growled. "One." He told himself. A hand summoned a fleet of Nightmares to his side. "We have work to do." With a glance up, he called, "Make yourself at home, Jack. I believe you'll be here awhile."

x

Three hundred years, and Jack Frost had never learned how to pick a lock. He'd never had to. Now, penned in on all sides and with a fairy (maybe even a friend?) depending on him, he was starting to regret the loss.

It was harder to summon ice without the staff, but he had enough magic for a tiny icicle. Currently it was rammed into the lock, as Jack wiggled it.

"Come on," the icicle snapped. Jack sighed, turning to Baby Tooth. "I don't think this is going to work."

The tiny fairy was pressed up against the side of her own cage, trying to twist her head so she could fit her beak into the keyhole. With a forlorn chirp, she assented.

"Hey, don't worry. We'll think of something. Do any of your sisters have any ideas?"

The resulting trills grated on his ears, but Jack's headache had healed a while ago.

Jack groaned and threw the remainder of his icicle into the abyss. "We need to get out of here! We need to help Jamie!"

"Touching." They jumped. Pitch was standing in a shadow. Tight in his grip was a squirming bundle. "Even after they no longer believe in you, you're holding out hope for your precious Guardians. What's wrong? Did you think they were coming for you?"

Jack scowled. Anger was good. It hid the dart of pain. "No."

"Let me go!"

Baby Tooth wailed. The bundle jumped, as if someone had kicked out from within it. Pitch dumped it unceremoniously into a cage, and out tumbled a boy with a missing tooth. Jamie scrambled to his feet. He was in his pajamas, a stuffed bunny held tight in one hand. "Who are you?"

"I'm the monster that lives under your bed, Jamie. Don't you remember me from when you were small? I'm hurt." Jamie gasped as the shadows at Pitch's feet whirled, "No matter. We'll have plenty of time to get reacquainted."

"He doesn't have anything to do with this!" Jack shouted, "Leave him alone!"

"He has everything to do with this!" Pitch snarled, "And as he refuses to do anything but believe in the Guardians, then this is all there is for him. There's more than one way to snuff out a light, Jack, and this way just happens to be more fun then most."

Jamie squinted at the Nightmare King, then at Jack's cage, "Who are you talking to?"

Jack couldn't hold back a wince. Pitch smirked at him. "No one."

The child summoned up his best glare. "You're crazy. When my mom finds out you took me, she's going to-"

"Be terrified, I'm sure. And I'm sure that fear will be delicious. The fear of adults isn't as nourishing as that of children, but then," he leered, "I'm sure I'll get plenty of both in the next few days. And who knows how little Sophie will feel, when she finds out her big brother is missing?"

Jamie's face wavered. "You l-leave them alone! Don't go near my family!"

Pitch was could have gloated for much longer, in fact he had been planning on it, but a sudden spark on the globe caught his attention. One of the children in South America had lost a tooth and had a weak memory of rainbow wings.

"The lights can go back on?" Jack said. Pitch ground his teeth. A wild, half-formed plan began to bloom in the frost spirit's mind. Right now he needed time. He called down to the Nightmare King, "How long does your sand last? Looks like it's starting to wear off already. No wonder you needed to take Sandy out first."

Pitch glared at the cages. If there was another believer, the Guardians would be running to find the brat. Jack had already proven that he wouldn't be able to follow orders. "Enjoy my hospitality, Jamie." He said, sinking into the shadows, "I'm sure I'll find my way back eventually." He vanished, off to Peru.

"What a drama queen," Jack mumbled to Baby Tooth.

A dry sob made them look down. Jamie had curled up on the floor of his cage, hugging his stuffed animal. "I want to go home!" Jack hated crying. Kids should laugh. Apparently, the fairies agreed. They trilled, making the boy look up.

"What are you all?" shakily, he stood up, squinting into the nearest cage. "You look like the Tooth Fairy." Happy chirping met this statement. "Are you her helpers?" More twittering. "Did he catch you too? Is that why none of my friends believe anymore?" Taking their replies for agreement, Jamie's face pinched with fear. "What about Sophie?" At the chirping, he frowned. "Isn't there anybody here who can talk to me?"

Baby Tooth looked at Jack. The spirit shrugged, reaching for his hoodie. "He can't see me, remember? I don't really exist."

The fairy rose higher into the air, borne on indignation. Jack Frost had saved her from a Nightmare's jaws, had protected her from Pitch. He'd come back for her when the Nightmare King had stolen her. He had the whitest teeth of anyone she'd ever seen. No one was going to tell her he didn't exist, particularly not Jack Frost himself.

Jamie looked up at the tiny fairy in the smallest cage, shooting off squeaks a mile a minute. "Why are you all alone?"

The fairy began talking even faster, pointing her head and both hands at the large, empty cage beside her. Her tone fluctuated between anger, frustration, and sadness.

"Let it go, Baby Tooth." Jack's voice was soft, resigned. "He's not going to see me. Just be happy he can even see you, the way things are going." She jabbed his finger with her beak. "Ow!"

x

Jamie held out on the locks a little longer than Jack had, though he didn't know it. He slumped down on the floor. "I want to go home. This is the worst Easter ever." He scrubbed under an eye. "Maybe Cupcake was right. Maybe I dreamed it. Maybe this is a dream too."

The light on the globe sputtered.

The solitary fairy twittered at him again, but she'd gotten less energetic over the hours. Jamie wished he knew what made her so sad. If they spoke English, he could have helped them.

"I'm sorry, I don't understa-"

Jamie forgot what he was saying. The large cage next to her was tilting. Ice bloomed in the space between the bars. Far as he was away from it, Jamie could see pictures being drawn in it. An egg, decorated for Easter. Then a Christmas tree. A tooth.

"Who's doing that? How is there ice?"

The single fairy made a noise of derision, crossing her arms.

"Not ice? Like ice? Ice, snow, fr-" He stopped talking. For a moment, he stopped breathing. Jamie had seen the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, Santa. How many other myths had he heard about? Who had the scary man been talking to, before he'd left? Someone named Jack? And designs in ice, not ice, but-

_Bundle up. You don't want Jack Frost nipping at your nose._

"Jack Frost…"

And suddenly the ice (_frost)_ shattered into snowflakes. Behind it, Jamie could see a startled, skinny teenager with a shepherd's staff, like the ones in Christmas pageants. The teenager hugged the staff to him, eyes wide.

"What did he say?" he whispered.

Jamie stared, "No way. Jack Frost?"

The teenager made a strangled noise, head twisting to the single fairy. "He said it again! But that's, but that's me!" he looked at Jamie again, at a loss. "You said my name! He said my name!"

Jamie gaped at him. "Jack Frost…"

The shepherd's crook clattered to the floor. "He can hear me?"

"Of course I can hear you."

The teenager (_Jack Frost_) took a tentative step closer. "Can you… see me?" Jamie smiled, nodding. Jack Frost whooped, jumping into the air. Snow exploded around him. "He sees me! He sees me!" The little fairy trilled happily, the others joined in. Jamie wasn't sure what was going on, but the elation on the spirit's face made him grin.

"How did you get here?"

"Pitch got us," the euphoria died, Jack looked at Jamie "We have to get you out of here. You need to get to the Guardians."

"Who?"

"Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny. You know them. You saw them, didn't you?"

"You were there for that?"

Jack nodded fervently. Now that someone could see him, he wanted to make sure his existence was firmly acknowledged. "Of course I was! And you remember that awesome sleigh ride?"

"That was you?!"

"That was me!"

"What about Sandman? Where is he?"

Jack's face faltered. "Pitch…Pitch got to him."

The bottom dropped out of Jamie's stomach. "Oh." For a moment, he'd forgotten where they were. The boy looked over the edge of his cage, into the far-reaching shadows where he was sure that nightmares and monsters waited for him…

A snowball struck him in the forehead. Jamie's head jerked up, just in time to dodge a second attack. Jack smirked at him.

"Don't worry about that, ok? I'll find a way to get us out of here." Children weren't supposed to worry about things like that. Jack didn't count himself as a child, but in this situation he figured he was the closest.

"Are you a Guardian too?"

Jack hesitated. "Not quite. I mess up too much for that."

Jamie scowled. "Well when we get out, I'm going to tell them that you should be a guardian!"

The half-smile on his face was shy, not like the arrogant ones he'd shown everyone else. Jack wasn't sure falsity was the proper course of action with Jamie Bennett. "I'm not sure that's how it works, but you're welcome to try. First, let's just worry about getting you to them."

x

They could hear Pitch now, sliding into the shadows. "Did anyone miss me?"

"Jack," whispered Jamie, suddenly grey, "I'm scared."

That wasn't alright. Pitch didn't need another weapon to use against them. And not at Jamie's expense. Jack knelt on the cage, as close to Jamie as he could get. "I know. But don't worry about Pitch. I'll take care of him. We're going to have a little…" he stopped, blinking, "A little _fun_ instead. That's it."

"Jack, what-"

But the shadows were moving again, bulging with the forms of Nightmares. Pitch walked among them, looking immensely pleased with himself.

A glance at the globe showed Jamie Bennett's light glowing steadily. "Look at you, Jamie. So full of belief. Tell me, child, do you believe in the Boogeyma-" A snowball struck him in the face. It knocked him into a Nightmare, who skittered on black ice and plunged into the ravine. The King of Nightmares ended up on his rump, snow littering his hair.

Jamie stifled a laugh. His terror was draining away, leaving only a trace. He glanced at Jack. The boy could see him. His light was even stronger than before.

With a roar, Pitch lunged for Jack. His hands sank through the bars of the cage and dragged the spirit up by his collar.

The small smile on his face vanished, Jack tried without success to squirm out of his grip, "Stop! I didn't mean to do it- I need to make snow! I can't help it!"

"We'll see if we can't fix that!" snarled Pitch.

x

The Guardians called in a lot of favors that day. Groundhog, when he had finished laughing himself sick over the state of Bunnymund, had agreed to help. When Pitch sensed a disturbance in his hordes of Nightmares, he assumed it was the Guardians making a feeble last stand. He raced off, unaware that it was a diversion.

The boy screamed with surprise as the Guardians tumbled into Pitch's lair. He was terrified, his hands red and chapped from pulling at the bars of his cage, but he was unhurt and clearly still believed.

"You have to help him!" he shouted as North fumbled with the lock on the door and Tooth struggled to free her fairies.

"It's Jamie, isn't it? Jamie, go to the sleigh. It's up that ladder; we don't have time-"

"He's gonna kill Jack!" the boy insisted, trying to run for a tunnel. When North grabbed him he fought the Cossack's hold, "He stopped talking hours ago!"

"To the sleigh, Jamie," the boy opened his mouth, but his protests died as North lumbered for the tunnel, "I will handle this."

Baby Tooth, freed by Toothania, fluttered weakly to his shoulder. He carried her in hand as he went. The air was thicker here, hotter by the tunnel's mouth than it had been anywhere else.

"Shostakovich," North murmured as he took in the sight.

Pitch had built a fire beside Jack's cage. It roared and crackled, flooding the walls with heat. A shepherd's staff was placed carelessly beside it, as if Pitch didn't care if it was eaten by the inferno. Orange flames painted the walls in warm hues, the air was awash with heat.

Jack Frost was curled up against the bars, as far from the fire as he could get, in a slump that made North think that he was melting. White hair was plastered to his head; his hoodie was sodden with melted frost. Water slid off him, trying to make ice, to form a protection against the flames, but its caster was too used up to manage it. The prisoner breathed shallowly, face flushed purple. There was an array of bruises there, with more vanishing into his water-logged sweater.

His eyes cracked open as North ripped the door off its hinges, but he made no move to flee. "Y're a bastard, Pitch," he croaked, voice slurred, and North went vertigo with discomfort. Then his eyes landed on Baby Tooth, held safely in North's hand, and fear contracted his face. "I didn't mean it," he said softly, and North realized with an unpleasant lurch that Jack Frost was pleading, that he thought North was Pitch, that he would crush the little fairy. "I didn't… mean it…"

Baby Tooth cheeped and flew to him. Jack caught her and cradled her against his chest, leaning weakly away from North. "Baby Tooth…"

"Jack," the boy flinched. The Guardian of Wonder tried to soften his voice, "Iz North. We must go now, before Pitch comes back."

Jack licked his lips. They were peeling with heat. This was not good. No ice spirit should be in the presence of this much fire, this much heat. "No. No, you're a Nightmare. Or an illusion. Again. I won't fall for it again, Pitch!" his voice cracked. "They're not coming!"

How many times had Pitch made him think they had come to rescue him, only to spark Jack's fears again? North's heart ached. The boy was delirious with heat stroke. How was North supposed to convince him that this time was real?

Baby Tooth chattered at Jack. He looked from her to North again, and a flash of lucidity caught his face. Slowly, he turned to the Russian again.

"North?" his voice was small, tremulous.

Then the light left his eyes. "You're here for Jamie. He's the third cage on the right." A weak joke. His repertoire was running thin. Jack slid down the bars of the cage again. Half-heartedly, he pushed Baby Tooth away. "Go with North." He told her.

"Jack, we have no time. You must come now."

His eyes had already slid shut again. "Y're here for Jamie, not me. You gotta get him out of here. S'not s'fe."

North grabbed his shoulder, ignoring the icy sweat that flowed off the boy. At the touch he moaned, trying to twist away. "No more, Pitch. No more illusions. Please. I'll do better next time."

"Izvinite, Jack," he apologized, hefting the spirit over his shoulder. Baby Tooth burrowed into the soaked hoodie, peeping comfort. "You are coming with us."

"M'staff," he whispered. North picked it up, safely out of the way of the fire. Jack gasped when it came in contact with him, and North felt a sudden chill. The sweat on Jack's arms froze, pressed against North, the boy took a shuddering breath.

Jamie rushed for Jack as soon as North reached the sleigh, and there was no time to process that the boy could _see_ him. "Jack!"

Jack blinked blearily at him. "Sorry about messing up your rescue, kid. I do that a lot." he managed before passing out.

Tooth, laden with fairies, looked at North for help. "The sleigh won't get off the ground. There isn't enough."

"I have enough snow globes to get us to the Pole," he said. Jamie looked between them, holding Jack's hand. Baby Tooth fluttered about the safety of Jack's hoodie.

"You can't leave Jack," he said, "He protected me." Baby Tooth trilled agreement.

"There will be no leaving of Jack," North told him sternly. To Tooth, he sent a glance. "You were right. Get snow globes from sack. We will go to Santoff Clausen."

_Poor Jack! After everything he's been through, he has to deal with me writing more ordeals for him to go through. _

_Please don't hesitate to let me know what you think! I hope you liked it!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Before I do anything else, let me say that I am SO sorry about being late. Things have been nuts, between declaring a second major, fighting for my study abroad, and about 7 projects. It's thanks to ShawnaCrazyGirl and her sister that I'm updating so early at all. It's still a very novel experience for me, having people interested in my writing, and if Shawna hadn't messaged me to remind me, I would have forgotten. Thanks!_

_Also I would like to thank all of you reading for your continued support. I have been overwhelmed by the response to this fic. Hopefully I will continue to entertain you!_

The first hour wasn't so bad. Jack made himself comfortable in the far side of the cage, trying to will the baby fire out before it got too strong. When that failed, he distracted himself by shouting out the door to Jamie, who was frantically calling for him. The thought that someone was worried about _him_ was enough to make Jack giddy.

The second hour was a bit worse, but Jack had braved the equator once to bring an unexpected snow day to Ecuador. He made a shield out of ice, blocking out the flames, and told a story about the time he'd found out Cupcake's favorite animal was unicorns. Hearing Jamie laugh was enough to distract him from the sweat running down his neck.

In the third hour Jack realized it wasn't sweat. The ice in his hair was starting to melt; his sweatshirt, once decorated with his best frost, was becoming heavy with water. His next ice shield was brittle; heat melted holes in it almost immediately. Swallowing the sudden dryness in his throat, Jack tried to think up jokes that Baby Tooth would appreciate.

By the fourth hour Pitch had come down to see how he was. Furious with the layers of melting ice along the cage, he'd ripped the staff from Jack's hand. The winter spirit was afraid to realize how weak his grip was. Pitch stayed for a time, and Jack couldn't talk to Jamie or Baby Tooth, couldn't distract himself from the feeling of heat evaporating his skin. When the fifth hour came, Jack's voice was too dry to tell any more stories.

It was sometime after the sixth hour that Jack heard crashing. He forced his eyes open in time to see North stride into the room.

"Jack! We haf been looking everywhere for you!"

A buzzing by his side became Tooth. "Jack! Don't worry, we'll get you out of here!"

They…they had come for him? Even though he'd ruined Easter?

The latch of the cage slid open. The winged fairy flitted over, holding out a hand for him.

Somehow, Jack managed to stagger to his feet. He was halfway out of the cage when a shivering sound filled his ears. He looked just in time to see North and Toothania collapse into nightmare sand.

A grey hand on his chin forced his head up; Pitch, his face contorted in a sneer and smile all at once.

"Going somewhere?"

A parade of hallucinations came by after that. Sometimes Tooth flittered around him, never able to reach him. North manifested in rescue attempts, and even Bunnymund made a few appearances. Sometimes Jack was actually tricked into thinking he was rescued, and he was punished for trying to escape with the mirages. A vision of Sandy tore a new notch in his soul. Pitch Black presided over all, sometimes in sight, sometimes not, but always watching. Pitch Black watched everything.

…There were no hours anymore. All concept of time had stopped for Jack. Sometimes he could hear a voice calling him, a boy, or sometimes a girl, but it cost too much to call out to them.

Besides, Jack thought, his grip on lucidity melting away, who would be calling for him.

Jack woke up in blessed, unrestrained _cold_. Then he remembered Pitch, and Baby Tooth crying, and heat strong enough to strip the ice from his bones.

He sat up with a gasp, sending snow flying on all sides. He had to tell Jamie he was alright, or the kid would think he'd left him with Pitch; he had to get him and Baby Tooth out of here-

…Snow?

He'd been asleep in what looked like a snow bank. Underneath, Jack could feel the softness of blankets, and springs under a mattress. Who had put him in a bed? A bed specially made for him, with snow? He had a feeling it wasn't Pitch.

There was light in the room, everywhere; cheerful and promising and hopeful. There wasn't a shadow to be seen. Someone had taken him (a sunburst of happiness exploded in his chest, someone had rescued _him_) and placed him in a bed with crisp snow with the windows open nearby, so that wind could wrap around his shoulders and he just needed his st-

Where was his staff?

Memories, rotten with fear, surged again; Pitch, fingering his staff, placing it by a fire. He'd given it to Pitch to stave off attention on Baby Tooth.

The need to get it back seared through him. What if Pitch still had it? What if it had been consumed in the fire?

His nerves stilled from frantic to mildly agitated when he caught sight of it, laid neatly across a table, next to a glass of water.

The sight of the water drove even the thoughts of his staff from Jack's mind. Thirst, like a clawed beast, awoke suddenly and viciously at the sight of it.

He waited still. Jack had been tricked like this before, sometime recently. Time ran wild in Pitch's lair, and Jack had no idea how long it had been, but the memory of near-scalding water closing his throat off haunted him teasingly.

Condensation misted the sides of the cup, promising cool liquid. Cautiously, Jack made a handful of snowflakes- not as many as he should have been able to- and tossed them into the water. Nothing.

He couldn't have waited any longer if he'd tried. He lunged for the water, grabbing it with both hands as he went. Cold slid into him, filled his skin and bones and God it felt so good after the fire he was pretty sure he'd felt…

"Calm down, ya gumby. Y'll make yerself sick."

Jack yelped in shock, lunging for his staff. The table went flying, glass tinkled as it broke against the floor. Chest heaving, Jack whirled to face Pitch.

Instead, he was pointing his staff at a tiny, fluffy bunny rabbit.

The bunny scratched an ear with a foot. "I'll bet you think this is funny, don't you?"

Jack stared at him, mouth working. "Bunny?" he said slowly. A look of incredulous delight spread over his face, before it was firmly stopped, hid under a mask of derision. "What, did you shrink in the wash?"

"Aw, rack off! This is what happens when kids stop believing in ya!"

Jack looked him over, still not lowering the staff. "What am I doing here?"

"We're at Santoff Clausen."

"I know that!" He'd tried to break in enough times, "But _why_ am I here?" Frost patterns spread along his staff, away from his fingers, which shook. The room chilled.

"We rescued you, didn't we? Where else would we put you?"

Far from the reaction Bunny expected, Jack's eyes narrowed. "Why?"

"Why?" Bunny was starting to feel vaguely guilty. Jack shouldn't have to ask why. "Are you saying we shouldn't have?"

"I ruined Easter." He said flatly. "Again. Why would _you_ rescue me?"

Bunnymund sighed. "Look, kid. I owe you an apology-"

"This is another illusion," the boy decided abruptly, taking a generous step away from the rabbit and twisting around the room, staff in position, "I don't know what you're playing at Pitch, but it's not even life-like anymore."

"Didn't North already do this song and dance with you?"

Jack paused, looking him over. Seemingly he remembered Baby Tooth, assuring him that he was safe this time. "Jamie made you take me." There was an undercurrent of hope in his voice. As the Guardian of Hope, Bunnymund could sense it. Jamie could see Jack. Jamie cared about Jack. The first positive contact the sprite'd had in centuries. Jack would do anything to protect him.

MiM, they'd really messed it up with Jack Frost.

"We found him when we came to rescue you." It struck him as important, just then. Bunnymund hadn't given it much thought, that Jack might need to know they'd come for _him_.

"Where is he? And Baby Tooth?"

"We told them to take a number," snapped Bunny, "Where do you think they are? Right now the kid's probably stuffing himself on cookies and Baby was warning him about cavities, the last I saw of 'em."

Jack rolled the staff in his hands before speaking softly. "Take me to them."

"Yer s'posed t'be on bedrest. Yer clearly still hur-"

"Take me to them!" Jack swallowed and leaned more heavily on his staff. The dark circles under his eyes seemed to deepen. "I want to see them. Then maybe I'll believe you."

After that, how could Bunny say no? He'd done enough to hurt the kid. "Alright, kid. Let's go slowly though, ok? Tooth'll kill me if anything happened to you."

A lurch of hope made Bunny stagger slightly. Jack shrugged up his hood weakly, faking nonchalance at the idea that someone would be worried for him. "Whatever. Can I see Jamie now?"

X

The North Pole was a child's paradise. It was Christmas every day; toys beyond a child's imagination filled whole rooms, the kitchens were bursting with good things to eat. There was no limit to the games one could play, to the fun they could have. It was impossible for a child to be unhappy at the North Pole.

Jamie Bennett gave it his best shot.

"I want to see Jack."

"Jack is resting. He was badly hurt by Pitch." North explained for what felt like the tenth time. Seeing the boy's eyes well with tears, he hastily added, "Jack will be fine. He will be about and out in no time."

And, reluctantly, Jamie would allow himself to be distracted by the wonder of Santa's Workshop. It never lasted long though; the boy's eyes kept darting to the door on the second level, waiting for someone to come out of it.

"How can you see Jack?" Tooth asked as her fairy took a break from explaining her adventure. "How did you know he was there?"

The last light on the globe, the Guardians had known Jamie Bennett would be a special child. They hadn't expected him to cling to Jack's hand throughout the ride to the Pole, or to flat out refuse to leave his side until Bunnymund had ordered them all out.

When he had started demanding that Jack be made a Guardian, _right now_, they had been staggered.

Jamie hugged his toy bunny. "I thought… No one was there. And I was scared, and the dark horses kept trying to reach me through the cage." The boy shut his eyes, shuddering. "And then there was ice. And pictures on the ice. And then…he was just there."

Baby Tooth chirped, flitting around her mother's head before speaking quicker than ever. Tooth rose to float with her.

Jamie watched them for a minute before turning back to North. "He said he'd protect me. And he did. He didn't let Pitch anywhere near me." His eyes darted for the door again. "He is gonna be ok, right?"

_He was bleeding from the mouth before Jamie was there. Pitch beat him in my place. _Baby Tooth explained to her mother. _He wouldn't fight back if it meant endangering me._

"Of course he will be. Jack is immortal, like us. All he needs is rest."

_Bunnymund knows how to heal. Jack will be fine. _Toothania said in reply.

Another glance at the door, "Alright…"

_No. Jack is not alright. He wasn't alright before Pitch. _Fairy emotions didn't last long. Already Baby Tooth's guilt was morphing into anger. _He thought no one would come. He thought you would leave him there. Why would he think that?_

Toothania couldn't answer. She was only just now seeing how terribly they had wronged Jack, not just for Easter, but for the past three centuries.

North had bullied Phil into giving the boy a piggyback by the time the door creaked open.

"That looks like fun," Jack rasped. Phil yelped as Jamie tugged at his hair, whirling to face the door. Jack Frost braced himself on his staff. The purple flush was gone, but he still looked exhausted. "But where do you put the quarter?"

"Jack!" the boy slipped off the yeti's back, rushing for the white-haired immortal. He threw his arms around him.

Jack hadn't braced himself for the contact. What was the point? He'd spent the last three hundred years getting walked through. So when Jamie slammed into him, completely solid, the air went out of his lungs; Jack toppled over.

Jamie clung to him anyway. "I'm so sorry you got hurt, and then Santa said you needed rest but you wouldn't wake up at all and the Easter Bunny said I had to leave the room and-"

Bunny winced at the look of amazement on Jack's face. He stared at Jamie like he'd never seen the boy before. Hopping over to North's shoulder, he muttered, "We bollixed this up."

"And then I tried to sneak in anyway, but the yetis caught me-"

Jack woke from his daze enough to hug him back then, just as tightly, and Jamie didn't have enough air to continue. Someone could see him. Someone could _touch_ him.

For three hundred years, Jack Frost had been starved of contact, except for the pain of being walked through. Now there was a solid, very real boy pressed against him. Jack would be damned if he let go now.

"Jack? You're really cold…"

Jack jumped, remembering where he was. He released Jamie and leapt to his feet, most of his old grace returned. He scratched his cheek, embarrassed. "Right. Sorry." Baby Tooth flitted to the pair, trilling, "Hey, Baby Tooth. I didn't see you over there."

"She told me what you did." Tooth walked over, her wings not working well enough to fly.

"Er…sorry." Jack said, thinking about how he'd let her get captured in the first place.

"Sorry?" Tooth's eyes filled with tears. She hugged him. "You saved her. We're the ones who are sorry! We should have known you wouldn't go over to Pitch without a reason!"

"Are you ok?" demanded Jamie over her shoulder. The boy was hovering around them, trying to make sure he was still close to Jack. "The Easter Bunny said you'd be ok, but you were all warm and talking in your sleep; and the little fairy told the bigger one that Pitch _hit_ you before I was there-"

One look at his face told Bunny this was too much. Jack Frost had gone centuries with a handful of conversations to get by with. Sandy had hinted that he'd known the immortal before, but the Sandman wasn't the most talkative bloke.

In the span of a week, Jack had gone from isolated and ignored to fussed over, and if the trapped look in his eye was any indication, he was completely overwhelmed. If they weren't careful, he would be out the window before North could say ho-ho-ho.

Bunnymund cleared his throat. "Alright you lot, I told ya he would need space when he woke up. Why is North suddenly the only one who's listenin' ta me?"

Tooth released Jack suddenly. "Oh that's right. I'm so sorry, Jack, are you feeling ok? Maybe it would be better if you went back to bed, or I could bring you something to drink-"

The teen gaped at her. Bunny hopped over to push at her feet. "I said space, Sheila. Give him some space."

Jamie hung resolutely to his side, and Baby Tooth settled defiantly in the lining of his hood, but Jack didn't seem to mind. He was blinking slowly, like he'd woken from a dream.

"How did you know where we were?"

North cleared his throat, patting his snowglobe projector. "Iz used for tracking. We tracked you, to see why you help Pitch."

Jack recoiled, stumbling back a step. Jamie planted himself between his protector and the Guardians, scowling as impressively as he was able.

"Jack would _never_ help Pitch! Don't you ever say something like that again!"

If anyone winced, it should have been Bunny. Certainly the glare Tooth was giving him showed that she thought so. It should not have been Jack Frost, the movement hidden from his defender. He fidgeted with the staff in his hands, unable to look at them.

He had no business looking that ashamed, when he'd done nothing wrong. Bunny had a horrible feeling that part of that was his fault.

"Of course he didn't go over to Pitch." Bunny had expected the words to come from Tooth, or North. Certainly not him. But Jack's eyes were on him now, suspicious and yet… Bunnymund could feel a shift of hope inside the spirit. It was faint, but it was hungry. Hope was a ravenous thing, and it had ignited in Jack's soul. So he continued as if he hadn't noticed anything. "Pitch was threatenin' to hurt the fairies. Jack bought us time to figure out what was going on, and to come up with a rescue mission."

The other fairies, not as strong as Baby Tooth, had been given perches along Santoff Clausen. They sighed at Jack, some even swooning. The spirit was looking from one face to the other, the blank look on his face threatening to become something more.

Jamie crossed his arms, "I told you he wouldn't. Jack's awesome. You should make him a Guardian."

Bunny had missed this argument. He glanced at North, who shrugged. "Make him a Guardian? Who told ya he wasn't?"

Jamie frowned, turning to look behind him. "Jack did."

X

Now that Jack was awake, it took even more effort to pry Jamie away from him. With the leftover dream sand such a precious commodity, they couldn't afford to use any on him. In the end, it was Jack himself who had to promise Jamie that the Guardians would give him back shortly, and that Phil was eager to give him another ride around the Pole.

Only then could they surround him, Bunnymund frowning impressively to hide his guilt, "Why did ya tell him ya weren't a Guardian, ya dill?"

"I'm not!" Jack had his staff between them as he wavered between anger and defensiveness. Tooth couldn't tell if this was Jack or if his nervousness was Pitch's doing. Either option made her upset. "You said it yourself; I'm not Guardian material!" He threw the words up like a shield. "Or did you forget?"

Bunnymund's ears went flat against his back. "Look Frostbite, we didn't realize why you were doing it-"

"It doesn't matter why I did it!" ranted Jack, demented in North's extra pajamas, white hair wild and slept in; "What matters is that I did it at all! And even before that, I ruined Easter!"

Bunny had been willing to assume the fiasco with his googies had been part of Pitch's plan. Now, however, a familiar anger sparked. "You mean ta tell me ya did that before Pitch made ya do anythin'?"

Jack flinched; Tooth raced to his rescue. "Not _now_, Bunny."

Jack Frost gripped his staff, feverish. He wouldn't meet Bunny's eyes. The hope that had been flickering in his soul began to dim. The boy lunged after it, trying to explain. "I didn't mean to! He tricked me and then Easter…and you didn't want me around. Then Pitch found me again and he had Baby Tooth and I couldn't- I messed up. I always mess up. I'll mess up again and then _he'll_ win."

Tooth should have taken control. She was the touchy-feely one. But her hands were over her mouth in horror. They had made him like this, so sure they would cast him out. So sure that he deserved it. On his shoulder, Baby Tooth began shrieking, furious that they thought her Jack had caused the Easter Fiasco and beyond upset that he agreed with them. In rapid fey, she explained to her mother what had really happened.

Jack had never had a defender before, and he didn't expect one now. He was too busy working himself into a state. "I know I should go before something else happens. I'll try to explain to Jamie."

It was North who stopped him leaving, North who could not let any child be so miserable for long. Jack looked up at the wide hand on his shoulders.

"You're going to get cold, doing that."

"I haf been cold before, Jack Frost. I work on Christmas. Am more worried for _you._ We do not want you to leave again. What if Pitch finds you?"

"I can take Pitch," he said, voice flat, "He doesn't have anyone to hold over my head now."

Baby Tooth grabbed a lock of snowy white hair and yanked, twittering angrily.

"She says this is no time for dramatics," Tooth translated, "And she's right. We can sort out what we need to apologize for later. Right now, Pitch is probably trying to think of how to get in and get Jamie. We need to figure out how to beat him."

"And you're still under my orders now," Bunny said, "You're not close to bein' healed up. Until ya are, you're my patient, and ya ain't goin' anywhere."

"You don't understand," the spirit said, voice shaking, "I'm not a Guardian. I'll never be a Guardian. You should cut your losses now, before Pitch regroups."

"Jack. You are a Guardian. You protected Jamie from Pitch. You kept him safe when no one else could."

"I almost killed you." Said Jack. His voice was feeble. "You can't trust me."

"Jack, you attacked us to protect my fairies. There wasn't a right answer to choose. You did the best you could." Toothania reached out her hand for his. When he didn't take it, she made a grab for it and brought it up to her chest. "And your best was very good."

Jack swallowed; eyes on her hand. The shriveling inside him that had been his hope began to grow again, slowly. It made Bunny nauseous; hope should not been stunted and misshapen like the show pony's was.

"Oh," he said weakly. His free hand fingered his hood, debating the need to hide behind it. With no small amount of trepidation, Jack left it around his shoulders. "What do I need to do?"

_Don't hesitate to let me know what you think! _

_Also, Merry Christmas, Kwanza, Solstice, Yule, Longnight, and all other holidays! Enjoy your winter breaks and hopefully you have snow! _


End file.
